How much do I weigh? :/

  • I weighed myself this morning and weighed 175lbs. I was super pleased! But then I weighed myself this evening and it said 180! :S Which is the correct weight? I'm confused!
  • Most people count the morning weight, since it tends to be the lowest.

    The important thing is to weigh yourself under consistent circumstances (same time of day, approx same clothing weight, same scale) to see trends. Weights fluctuate over the day, obviously putting on different clothes changes it, what you eat or drink (until you eliminate it) gets added in. I move around an 8 lb or so range during the day, depending on how recently I ate or drank, etc.

    Just pick one and stick with it.
  • Thanks x
  • Quote: Thanks x
    Last week my official weight was 210 which I always do on the nicer scale at the gym (with similar clothes/sneakers) pre-workout.

    I also weigh at home out of curiousity. Friday night I jumped on my home scale and it read 219 After a pretty normal weekend of not over or under eating, Monday morning it read 206.

    While that was the most crazy swing, I regularly have a 10 lb difference from night to day and depending on water and waste level.

    So don't stress about the little movements, but like Mandalinn said at least have some consistent set of factors so you can spot trends.
  • You are looking for trends not aboslute numbers per se. Scientific Method process.
  • I just read this great article at the Prevention Magazine site titled "Make Friends with Your Scale". ( online.prevention.com/scale/index.shtml)

    They included a a food diary that showed how much weight could fluctuate within one day!

    Quote:
    Don’t let the number determine your self-worth! One 40-something Prevention reader shared how her weight fluctuated in 1 day.

    7:15 AM: 133.8 lb, Right before hopping in the shower

    8:30 AM: 137.5 lb, Wow, my clothes weigh 3.7 lb!

    9:15 AM: 138.7 lb, Gained 1.2 lb from breakfast

    10:30 AM: 137.9 lb, Bathroom break, -0.8 lb

    1 PM: 135.8 lb, Lost 2.1 lb, thanks to a sweaty cardio workout

    1:30 PM: 137.4 lb, Up 1.6 lb from lunch

    4 PM: 138.6 lb, Gained 1.2 lb, probably from all the water I was drinking

    5:30 PM: 137.5 lb, Bathroom break, -1.1 lb

    11 PM: 140.8 lb, Yikes! Gained 3.3 lb—probably the pasta I ate and the wine!

    11:30 PM: 137.1 lb, Undressed—huh, gained 3.3 lb since this morning

    7:15 AM: 135.4 lb, Lost 1.7 lb while sleeping
  • Wow that's really interesting. Thanks x
  • The morning weight is the correct one. When you weigh yourself in the evening, you're not only weighing yourself, but everything you ate and drank as well.